At Banks & Jones, we understand how to access traffic camera footage. These images can help prove that a driver violated a traffic rule or drove negligently, and that their negligence caused your accident and your injuries (or the death of a loved one). For example, traffic camera footage from an intersection can show that a driver entered the intersection when the traffic light was red, failed to yield the right of way, drove while distracted, or that they were in the lane to complete a turn.

What are the different types of traffic camera footage?

Most governments (states, counties, and municipalities) install cameras at intersections where there are red lights and on all roads where speeding is known to be common. Private businesses and drivers may have their own traffic camera images.

Governmental footage

The different types of government-owned cameras that are capable of recording car accidents include:

• Cameras at red lights. These cameras are usually placed at busy intersections. The cameras take a picture of a vehicle that drives through a red light to capture the license plate information (state and number). Drivers can be cited for driving through a red light by mail. Generally, red light cameras only take photographs, not videos. This means that the camera footage may be useful in showing a red light infraction, but is unlikely to provide other relevant information.
• Speed cameras. Like red light cameras, speed cameras just take a photograph of a driver’s license plate. They are used at locations where drivers are known to speed and at roadway construction sites.
• Live cameras. The Tennessee Department of Transportation has live cameras at various locations throughout Knoxville and the rest of Tennessee. TDOT uses the cameras to provide information about the flow of traffic, weather conditions, and other traffic information. TDOT typically does not store its camera footage. Our car accident lawyers can determine where live traffic cameras are in place by accessing the TDOT site and typing in the major city (Knoxville and other locations) or the street address. We can see live footage by clicking on the appropriate camera link.

Private footage

At Banks & Jones, we also work with private investigators who question local businesses and local residents to determine if they have any photographic or video footage of your accident. In many cases, the owner will permit our investigator the right to view the footage. Otherwise, we can issue a subpoena to review the footage.

What are the different types of cameras that record car accidents?

• Property security cameras. If your accident happens near a business or a resident, the property owners may install cameras for security purposes. This type of footage can be very valuable because if the location and the angle of the footage are accurate, the footage can show what happened and why the driver who caused your accident should be held liable. It’s important to have investigators speak with the property owners as quickly as possible to preserve the camera footage.
• Dash cameras. Many vehicle owners install cameras on their vehicle’s dashboard. Dash cameras can provide footage of how the accident happened from different angles. The best-case scenario is when you have a dash camera. If the defendant has a dash camera, we can request to see their footage by making a formal discovery request. If another driver has the footage, then the footage can be used if the owner identifies themselves or we can discover who the owner is.
• Smartphone footage. Some passengers or witnesses may have photographs or video of your accident. Our car accident lawyers investigate where this footage exists. We then work to obtain any existing footage.

 How do we obtain traffic camera footage?

Once we know if there is a traffic camera near the site of your accident or if a private person or business has camera footage, we work to determine who owns the footage. It’s important to move quickly since traffic footage is often deleted or new footage overrides the old footage.

Generally, we obtain footage through a direct request. If the owner of the traffic camera footage does not agree to provide the footage, our personal injury lawyers can present the owners with a subpoena compelling them to provide the footage. If necessary, we may seek court orders to obtain the camera footage.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation web portal states that they have seven days to respond.

What information does traffic camera footage provide?

With luck, there will be camera footage of your accident or the events immediately prior to or after your accident.

In most cases, cameras that the government installs show the license plate number and state of the driver who violates a traffic law. The camera footage may also show how many lanes there are, the turning lanes, and where the traffic signals are and whether there are traffic lights, stop signs, or other traffic signals. The cameras may provide other information, such as whether it’s snowing, raining, sunny, or foggy.

The license information can be useful to identify a driver, especially if you are involved in a hit-and-run accident.

At Banks & Jones, we work with investigators, the police, and traffic reconstruction experts (if necessary), and through the discovery process to show the cause of your car accident and who should be liable. Camera footage can help show that another driver is liable. The footage can help secure a settlement of your car accident case. If properly authenticated, traffic camera footage can also be presented in court and to a jury.

Call Banks & Jones or fill out our contact form to schedule a free consultation. We handle car accident cases on a contingency fee basis.